Iron County Heritage Area
Between 1 to 1 1/2 million years ago sediments of slate and cherty iron carbonates were laid down on top of the granite and greenstone bedrock covering this area. Molten lava flowed over the land, seeping into the great cracks on the surface creating "dikes." Then the land was submerged under a great glacial sea and more layers, of sandstone and conglomerate rock, were deposited on top.A catastrophe tilted this geologic layer cake, standing the rock layers almost on end, at a 65 degree angle to the northwest. At this steep pitch, the layers slipped apart. Rain water seeped between the cracks. Over eons the layers of iron carbonate rock oxidized creating a band of low phosphorus hematite, a highly prized form of iron ore used in making steel.
You are standing above the "footwall" - the geologic intersection of a dike and the southern most edge of the iron formation. Along this edge the greatest concentration of iron ore was found. This underground wealth, created eons ago, spurred the development of the Penokee Iron Range.
| HM Number | HMUJJ |
|---|---|
| Tags | |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Sunday, September 21st, 2014 at 2:41pm PDT -07:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 15T E 708059 N 5142901 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 46.40763333, -90.29301667 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 46° 24.458', W 90° 17.581' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 46° 24' 27.48" N, 90° 17' 34.86" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 715 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 220-224 Jefferson St, Montreal WI 54550, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.
Comments 0 comments